Mechanism for feeding sheets or blanks



June 2, 1931. A. NOVICK MECHANISM FOR FEEDING SHEETS OR BLANKS OriginalFiled Jan. 6, 1928 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 B Y INVENTOZ ATTORNEYS MECHANISM FORFEEDING SHEETS OR BLANKS Original Filed Jan. 6, 1928 I 5 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR & N B WM ATTORN EY5 June 2, 1931. A. NOVICK nmcmmxsu FORFEEDING SHEETS on BLANKS Original Filed Jan. 6, 1928 5 Sheets-Sheet 3INVENTOR ATTORNEYS June 2, 1931.

A. NOVICK MECHANISM FOR FEEDING SHEETS 0R BLANKS Original Filed Jan. 6,1928 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR ATTORNEYS June 2, 1931. A. NOVICK1,307,865

MECHANISM FOR FEEDING SHEETS OR BLANKS Original Filed Jan. 6, 1928 5Sheets-Sheet 5 ATTORNEYS Patented June 2, 1931 UNITED STATES, PATENTOFF-ICE ABRAHAM NOVIO'K, OF FLUSHING, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR T F. L. SMITHEMACHINE 00., INCL, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORKMECHANISM FOR FEEDING SHEETS OR BLANKS a 3 Application filed January 6,1928, Serial No. 244,786. Renewed September 4, 1930.

My present invention relates to sheet feeding mechanism which isparticularly adapted for feeding envelope blanks from a stack intofurther mechanism for gumming the blanks and folding them intoenvelopes. In my earlier application Serial Np. 143,047, filed October21, 1926, I have disclosed and claimed a mechanism for feeding blanksfrom a stack so as to form a band in which the blanks overlap oneanother. The present invention may be regarded as an improvement of suchmechanism although not limited thereto and is particularly concernedwith the provision of improved means for completely separating theoutermost blank from the stack and improved means for transferring theseparated blank into contact with the means for conveying the blanksfrom the stack.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent as thedescription proceeds.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a view in sideelevatio of a preferred embodiment of my invention. Figure 2 is a viewon a somewhat reduced scale of the same machine, seen from the right ofFigure 1 and in the plane of the feed discs. Figure 3 is a plan view ofthe machine illustrated .in the foregoing figures, the scale beingapproximately the same'as Figure 2.

Figures to 10 show diagrammatically the operations of separating the topsheet from the stack and transferring it to means for positivelygripping it and conveying it away, Figure 4 showing the feed separatordiscs employed in initial position with reference to the blank shown andcorresponding to the positions of the parts as seen in Figure 3.

Figure 5 shows the position of the sucker after having lifted the end ofthe blank.

Figure 6 shows the position of the separator discs at the start of theseparating action of the discs and corresponds to the position of theparts shown in Figure 5.

Figures 7 and 8 show the position of the parts a little further in thesame cycle.

Figures 9 and 10 show the parts at or near the completion of the feedingcycle.

Figure 11 shows the position of the sucker the sake of clearne'ss.

In order that the understanding of the illustrative machine may befacilitated, the

operations to be gone through with may be briefly summarized. The blankW to be fed off the stack is first engaged preferabl at one end by thesucker A, Figures 1 and which action of the sucker lifts the end of theblank as is customary in feeding devices of this type. As soon as thislifting has been initiated, the upturned edge of the blank is engaged bytransfer members which for the sake of convenience, may be termeddaggers, which pass beneath said edge and by their continued movementtransfer the released portion of the blank to the conveying rolls G.Preferably directly following the engagement of the blank by thedaggers, the entrant portions of the discs E shown in Figs. 3 and 4 to10 inclusive, pass beneath the blank and ultimately sever it completelyfrom the pile or stack beneath it. It will be understood that as theblanks are removed from the stack, the stack will be elevated bymechanism which forms no part of the present invention so as to maintainthe level of the" topmost blank to be fed substantially constant.

Sucker and operating meham'sm therefor Inspection of Figures 4 to 10will indicate that it is desirable for the sucker to have both ahorizontal movement to-and-fro and a vertical up-and-down movement. Themeans for imparting this to-and-fro movement is as follows: Referring toFigure 1 the sucker A is pivotally mounted on a link 10 which is capableof an oscillatory motion about a shaft 11 as an axis, and is moved aboutsaid shaft by means of a cam 12 engaging cam follower 13, and attachedto said shaft 10.

Mechanism for performing the vertical movement of this sucker consistsof a clamp thereto at one end, and secured to a shaft 18 at its otherend. Shaft 18 in turn receives a rocking motion as follows: As seen inFigure 2, shaft 18 extends through a frame of the machine 19 and hasconnected at its end an arm 20 (see also Fig. 1)', said arm being inposition to be rocked by a curved arm 21 attached' to a shaft 22.The-inner end of said shaft 22 has secured thereto a bellcrank 23 havinga follower 24 which makes contact with the cam 25, tension of the spring26 attached to an arm of said crank serving. to cause the follower 24 tofollow the contour of said cam. A'spring 25 operatively attached toshaft-27 (Fig. 2) returns the sucker to its initial position against thestack. Thus from the foregoing it will be seen that by the mechanismdescribed the shaft 18 is raised. against the tension of spring 25.- Thepurpose of having the connection of operating elements for the suckerbroken between the arm 21 and the arm 20 is to permit the slight play atsuch point occasioned by the fact that the sucker must descend a slightdistance below its .previous position due to the removal ofa blank andbefore the level of the stack has been re-" stored by the stackelevating mechanism.-

The sucker A, it will be noted, is capable of longitudinal adjustment byvirtue of a screw thread 111, having engagement with a '30 portion 112pivotally attached to link 10.

The purpose of this adjustment is in order that the mouth of the suckermay be adjusted for diEerent shapes of blanks, as for example, in thease where the bottom flap of the blank is pointed instead of the moretruncated type shown in Figure 3. A blank having such a pointed bottomflap is shown in Figure 11, wherein the sucker A is also shown inoperative position. A tubular portion of sucker A 40 is connected to asource of suction not shown.

Also it will be understood-that the suction is turned on and off byappropriate mechanism not shown. 4

Means for transferring the blank fromthe sucker to the conveyor means Aspreviously mentioned, this mechanism consists in horiz-ontally movingdaggers D. These members, which are preferably two in number, aremounted close to the sucker A on either side thereof, see for exampleFigure 3, andin such position engage the bottom flap along thelongitudinal edge thereof (i. e. parallel to the longitudinal axis ofthe blank) although the presence of this longitudinal edge is notnecessary for the operation of the q daggers, as a blank of the type inwhich the bottom flap has a pointed end'may, as above stated, likewisebe operated upon, so long as the daggers are properly disposed withreference to the sucker, whereby the blank is sufiiciently lifted beforethe operation of said daggers. Such daggers D moreover preferably haveedges 113 of the approximate curvature of the main feed roll of theconveyor and entered into conveying means means-C'for aiding in thepresentingof the I blank thereto.

Each dagger D is attached on either side of block 30 which is arrangedto slide back and forth on a guide 30a',means for performing thisconsisting of a link 31 attached to lever 31a, pivoted on shaft 32', andwhich has a horizontally extending portion at the end of which is a camfollower 33, which engages cam 34. Thus at the proper time, movement ofsaid cam causes the block 30, carrying the daggers D to reciprocate backand forth.

Separator discs Referring to Figures 1 and 3, in each disc E is formedaplurality of inwardly and eccentrically extending cut-out portions 40 soas to form a plurality of blades 41, eachblade having a beveled entrantedge 42 and also a follower edge 43, preferably, though not necessarily,beveled as shown. As has been previously mentioned, it isthepurpose ofthese discs to insure a complete separation of the topmost blank, andaccordingly move-' ment of the discs is timed so that the entrantportion of the blade passes beneath the blank as soon as its edge is,turned up by the sucker and is engaged by the transfer members ordaggers D. Accordingly to operate such disc in timed relation, there isprovided a shaft 45 upon which each disc is mounted,-

such shaft being connected through bevel' gearing -46 to shaft 47,which'shaft 47 has at the opposite end thereof, a second and largerbevel gear 48 (shown in dotted lines in Figure '1 and in full lines inFigure 2) which is driven by means of a beveled gear 49 on a drive shaft50. 00nve3 z'ng.nceans receiving the blank from J the transfer deviceThe blanks having been transferred by the daggers D are now in positionto be (gripped This conveyingmeans is similar in principle'to thatdisclosed in my said copending application Serial No. 143,047, butdiffers therefrom in important details as will be apparent hereafter.This gripping of the blank is ef-- fected by means of the roller 55 ofsaid means iary rollers 56, 56 which have a motion of rotationto feedthe blank as well as a planetary motion about the main roll 55 to bedescribed. The extent of this planetary motion. is seen from Figure 5,for example, in which the extreme positions of the roller are indithisconstructionallowing the auxiliary rolls 'with which cooperates a pairof small auxil- 56 to be yieldingly held against the main roller 55 bymeans of a coil spring 460 which is mounted on said shaft 58. Shaft 58is in turn mounted upon links 61 which engage the shaft 62 carrying themain roller 55. Motion is imparted to said shaft by means of a link 63which is connected to a bell crank 64 having a follower 65 operated bycam 66, the other arm of said bellcrank being connected with a spring 67which causes the said follower to follow the contour of the cam. This upand down movement of the link 63 causes the links 61 to be rocked uponthe shaft 62 and hence the shaft 57 carrying rollers 56 likewise to berocked, such motion of the rollers following the periphery of the roll55. Since the mechanism for moving each roller I 56 is the same, it willbe understood that the foregoing description with reference to one ofthe rollers 56 applies equally to the operation of the other roller 56.For imparting the necessary motion of rotation to the gripping andconveying rollers I have provided a gear 68 whose driving gear is notshown, said gear 68 meshing with gear 69 secured to the shaft 57carrying the auxiliary feed rolls 56. To assist in maintaining saidgears in mesh, I provide a coil spring 70 about shaft 58 whose action issimilar to, and assists that of spring 60 further along said shaft. Forthe purpose of preventing the gears 68 and 69 from jamming, due to theaction of springs 60 and 70, I have provided an adjustable stop 71carried by link 61 and contacting with the outer of said links 59.

M eams for assisting the separating action of the sucker Referring toFigures 1 and 2, I have provided three fingers, one of which 80,- isseen in Figure 1' for assisting the separating action of the sucker A,such fingers resiliently pressing against the top edge of the stack. Inorder to vary the tension in said fingers and to adjust their positionwith reference to the stack, I have mounted each of such fingers upon anarm 81 which is adjustably mounted in a bracket 83, the latterin turnbeing pivotally mounted on a shaft 83 and held in adjusted position withreference to said shaft by means of a wing nut 84. In order to adjusteach finger 80 in a longitudinal direction each arm 81 has an upstandingend 85 through which a knurled-headed bolt 86 is passed, such bolt beingthreaded in the bracket 82. 'A spring v87 keeps the arm 81 against thehead of bolt 86. Thus by means 1 of the construction described, eachfinger 80 may be adjusted both longitudinally and up and down about theshaft 83 as an axis.

Operation of may now be given. Figure 4 represents the discs above thetopmost blank, the last blank having been just removed. The sucker A isabout to lift the blank and this occurs when the discs E have movedsuficiently to perrnit the edge of the blank to be turned up. Thiscondition is shown in Figure 5. The blank now having been lifted by thesucker, the daggers D are moved forward beneath the uplifted edge of theblank, whereupon the suction is cut off and the edge of the blank isallowed to fall upon the receiving edge of the daggers. Continuedmovement forward of the daggers, and continued rotation of the discs,allow-the edge of the blank to be pushed forward as shown in Figures 7and 8, where in such position the edge of the blank is in closeproximity to the main feed roller 55. When this occurs the planetaryrollers 56 are moved downward along the periphery of roller 55 andengage the edge of the blank and commence their feeding action upon it.This situation is seen in Figures 9 and 10 and when it has taken place,the discs E have moved to the position shown in Figure 10 to completelyrelease the blank, whereupon continued operation of the machine resultsin further feeding of the blank between the roller 56 and the rolls 55,the retraction of the daggers D and the lowering of the sucker A againstthe edge of the stack,'whereby in such position of the parts a newfeeding cycle is recommenced.

During the feeding of the blanks, the fingers 80 pressing against theedge of the stack function to prevent the sucker from lifting up theedge of more than one blank at a t1me.. Also as the blanks'are removedfrom the top of the stack, the mechanism level of the topmost blanksubstantially con-- stant. V

As has been stated the normal operation of the feeder described is tofeed the blanks so as to form a band with each blank overlapping the onenext to it. In this manner one surface of the band willybe composed, forexample, of the exposed portions of the sealing flaps, whereby saidflaps may be gummed by applying the gum in a continuous band 'to suchexposed portions. 4 In order to regulate the amount of overlap of theblanks and hence the width of the gum applied to each flap, it is onlynecessary to vary the speed of rotation of the auxiliary and main feedrollers with reference to the operating cycle of the feeding memberscomprising the discs E, the sucker A, and the daggers D, this adjustmentbeing conveniently effected by change in the gear ratios of the drive ofthe' ration of the topmost blank from the stack. This is importantbecause of the fact that occasionally the blanks stick (particularly inthe case of window envelope blanks) and without the presence of theseparator discs it occasionally happens that the blank being has beenreleased. A further feature of the present invention is that theseparator discs E traverse substantially the entire surface of the blankand thus are particularly efiective in completely separating the blankto be fed from those beneath it.

It will be understood that various changes may be made from the exactembodiment described without departing from the spirit of myinvention,and that while the invention 'is particularly adapted for feeding theblanks from the top of the stack, the principles thereof may also beapp-lied to mechanism for feeding theblanks from the bottom of thestack.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. In a blank feeding mechanism, having means for separating an edge ofan outermost blank, means for gripping a presented blank and conveyingit from the stack, comprising a main feed roller and a cooperatingauxiliary roller, means for transferring the partially separated sheetto said conveying means comprising a member having a reoiprocatory mo- 7tion adapted to engage between the separated edge of the blank and thestack to move said blank against said main conveyor roller, said memberhaving an edge presenting said blank to the main roller of theapproximate contour of said main roller, and means for moving saidauxiliary roller to grip said preented blanksagainst said main roller.

2. In a blank feeding mechanism, having means for suppdrting a stack ofblanks, means for gripping a presented blank and conveying it from thestack, means for lifting an edge of the outermost blank, a separatormember, means to enter said member beneath the lifted edge of the blank,transfer .means for moving the separated portion of the blank to saidconveying means, and means for operating said transfer means and saidseparator means so that said blank is moved by said transfer means as itis released by said separator means.

3. In a blank feeding mechanism, having means for supporting a stack ofblanks, means for gripping a presented blank and convey ing it from thestack, comprising means for displacing an edge of'the outermost blank,separator members in the form of discs having entrant portions adaptedto engage between said outermost blank and the stack and reciprocatorymembers transferring the released blank to said conveying means andmeans for operating said transfer means and said separator means so thatsaid blank is moved by said transfer means as it is released by saidseparator means.

4. In a sheet feeding mechanism for envelope blanks, means for grippinga presented sheet and conveying it from the stack, comprisin a mainroller extending throughout the width of the sheet being fed, a pair ofauxiliary rollers, adapted to grip and hold the sheet against theroller, means for rotating said auxiliary rollers with the sameperipheral speed as said main roller and means for moving said auxiliaryrollers back and forth along the periphery of said main roller.

5. In a blank feeding mechanism in which the blanks are fed from the topof the stack and in which means is provided for elevating the stack tomaintain the level substantially constant, a sucker for lifting the edgeof the topmost blank, means to reciprocate the sucker in a plane more orless normal to the blanks, comprising an actuating cam mechanism and aninterrupted connection between said actuating mechanism and said sucker,permitting said sucker to return to the topmost blank on thestack incase the elevating mechanism should not have become operative to restorethe level of said stack.

6. In a blank feeding mechanism, having means for separating an edge ofan outermost blank, means for gripping a presented blank and conveyin itfrom the stack, comprising a main feed roller and a cooperatingauxiliary roller, means for transferring the partially separated sheetto said conveying means comprising a member having a reciprocatorymotion adapted to engage between the separated edge of the blank and thestack to move said blank against'said main conveyor roller, and meansfor moving said auxiliary roller to grip said presented blank againstsaid main roller.

7. In' a blank feeding mechanism, having means for holding a stack ofblanks, means for completely separating the outermost blank from thestack, a sucker, means for moving same to bend the edge of the blank tobe separated, a transfer member, means for moving same to enter into thespace between said bent edge of the blank to be separated and the-stack,means for releasing the suction in said sucker and allowing the releasedportion of the blank to be guided by said transfer member, and means formoving said transfer member in position to bring said released portionof the b grip of a conveying means.

lank into the 8. In a blank feeding mechanism, having means for holdinga stack of blanks, separator elements for more or less completelyseparating the outermost blank from the stack, a transfer member, meansfor entering same between the outermost blank and the stack, said partsbeing arranged so that said transfer member simultaneously peels saidblank from the stack as it is released by said separating elements.

9. In a device for feeding envelope blanks in overlapped relation, incombination, a support for holding a stack of blanks, means forinitiating the separation of the outside blank, means completelyseparating said blank from the stack independently of the forward feedof the blank, a conveyor for said blank for conveying same away from thestack, and means for bringing the separated portion of the blank againstsaid conveyor and for holding same incontac-t therewith whereby saidblank may take the motion of the conveyor.

10, In a device for feeding envelope blanks in overlapped relation, incombination, a support for holding a stack of blanks, a conveyor forwithdrawing the blanks from the stack and for conveying the same awayfrom the stack, means for initiating the separation o f the outsideblank of the stack, a pair of apertured rotary members whose movement isadapted to complete the separation of said blank from the stack, andmeans for bringing the separated portion of the blank against saidconveyor and for holding same in contact therewith whereby said blankmay take the motion of the conveyor.

In testimony whereof I have aflixed my signature to this specification.

ABRAHAM NOVI'CK.

